Modern Abstract Chess Set - Black & White

Black and white, and not a single horse’s head.

This modern abstract chess set was made in the United States in the 20th century, in camel bone. The pieces are reduced to geometric forms: cubes, stepped blocks, slim prisms and faceted towers, the ranks told apart by height and shape. One side is polished black and the other is white bone, set on a board of alternating black and white squares. The pale pieces show faint natural variation in the grain, the dark ones a deep, even gloss.

The board is about twelve inches square. Play slowly, since nobody will remember the opening.